"Well, the citizens of Melromarc perceive the first princess to be both sadistic and selfish. That because of her problems, her mother decided it would be best if someone else was declared queen."

When I woke up, I was screaming. My heart pounded inside of my chest.

W-Where was I?

I looked around. It took me a moment to recognize my room.

"Another dream..."

I blinked tears out of my eyes. I hated them.

I think it was about a month since I started having these nightmares. It made no sense because I kept seeing things that I never encountered in my life. I can barely remember what happened except for the pain. There was also that voice, laughter echoing over the screams of countless people. Whenever I thought about it, it sent shivers down my spine.

None of it was real. But as much as I try to convince myself, I can't stop thinking about it.

For a moment, I wondered if someone would come to check on me. Since the last time I screamed, I had made it painfully clear that whoever disturbed me would be punished. That didn't stop some people. For one, my father could be very overprotective. Ever since he found out about my nightmares, he insisted on having someone watch over me during the night. As if I needed someone like that.

My mother would have gone on some triad about how I needed to take care of myself. Even my nightmares would have been dismissed as nothing more than cries for attention. I couldn't remember the last time she had looked at me with anything resembling affection.

Between my father and mother, I could honestly care less about what people think of me. Whether it's the servants in the castle, the nobility, or the peasants struggling in the village, none of them mattered. If there is one thing I learned as princess it's that people only respect power. Things like friendships and loyalty are nothing more than meaningless drivel.

Now that my point is clear, I suppose I should tell you who I am. Whether you intended to pick up this book or not, we are going to be spending a lot of time together unfortunately.

My name is Malty. Malty Melromarc, first daughter to Mirelia Q Melromarc and second in line to the throne. Because even though I am the first princess, my younger sister has been declared heir instead of me.

I live in a precious sort of family. My father used to be quite the renown hero, while my mother goes by many names. Fox, Vixen, Queen Mirelia Q Melromarc the twenty-something. I suppose these titles were meant to give credit to her skill at negotiations. To me she will always be an overly obsessive woman who seeks to control every part of my life.

I don't think I need to mention that Melromarc has become famous over the last few decades. This is largely due to my father who earned the moniker 'king of wisdom' for defending the country from Siltvelt. He married into the royal family, being probably the only man who has ever managed to successfully woo mother. Fast forward several years into the future, and me and my sister were born. I am the older child, but for some reason my mother decided that my sister Melty would be the next heir. Even though she is young, she has already managed to obtain a reputation as a mature and noble young leader.

As for me …

Well, the citizens of Melromarc perceive the first princess to be both sadistic and selfish. That because of her problems, her mother decided it would be best if someone else was declared queen. Part of me thinks my mother did this just to spite me. I can't imagine that in any world it would be a good idea to declare a child as the next queen. The world of politics is a cruel place, filled with two-faced people ready to bury knives in your back. My sister isn't ready for such a place, but what do I know? I'm just the first princess. Even if I will not be queen, people respect my title, if nothing else. They should know better than to cross me.

Despite how I may feel, I don't hate my sister. Sure, Melty can be annoying and incredibly naive at times. Her favourite hobby involves talking to birds and she takes after our mother in terms of dress. Otherwise, she's just fine.

I sighed as I stared outside the window. I could see the many torches hung like fires against the night. My gaze drifted from the castle, to the church in the distance.

It had been about a month since my mother took Melty to attend the international conference in Faubley. Due to the appearance of the waves of catastrophe, monsters had been appearing all across the world. Officially, the purpose of the conference was to summon the cardinal heroes to help protect everyone. Unofficially, the purpose was to determine which country would have the honour to support each hero, and therefore gain influence over their actions. It was politics, a game my mother played well, but one that I could care less for.

As for my father, I would be lying if I said I wasn't concerned. He was anxious now that my mother was gone, often distracted. Instead of having dinner together, I eat alone, while my father meets with more members of the nobility and the church than I would expect from someone who wasn't the regent. Did I mention that? Although my father is the royal consort, he is not the regent of this country. No, my mother decided to hand that power to someone else, a noble by the name of Seatto. He had an interesting reputation to say the least. My mother praised him as a man of virtue who was instrumental to improving relations with Siltvelt after the war. However, some of the nobility claim that he is a traitor, a monster trying to uplift the beasts that are demi-humans.

Those are my father's words, not mine. I do my best to stay away from any arguments between my parents. Furthermore, my mother has already made it clear what she would do to me if she found that I had a demi-human slave. It was ridiculous considering that most of the nobility practiced slavery, but I knew it was a sensitive subject. Regardless, it wasn't my problem to deal with. I am not the heir to this country, nor will I care about its fate. That is Melty's responsibility, not mine.

With only my own thoughts for company, I stared up at the ceiling waiting to fall asleep that night.